


Fête Galante

by medi



Category: Fire Emblem Series, Fire Emblem: If | Fire Emblem: Fates
Genre: Ballroom Dancing, M/M, fancy party, i love these kinds of scenes
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-06
Updated: 2018-02-06
Packaged: 2019-03-14 12:30:46
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,232
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13590102
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/medi/pseuds/medi
Summary: Kaze and Xander steal the show at a Nohrian gala.





	Fête Galante

**Author's Note:**

> Straight from my notebook to here because I don't fear god or death.  
> I worked somewhat outside of the game's canon story and based Nohr and Hoshido's relationship (as well as some cultural aspects) on that of Fereldan and Orlais from the Dragon Age series, preferring the idea of two countries at an uneasy peace with each other rather than outright war.  
> (Also there's a few other characters mentioned for atmosphere but I didn't tag them since they don't have any lines.)

The recent Nohrian fascination with masks and masquerades came off as strange to their Hoshidan neighbours. Granted, the two nations rarely understood each other or their cultures (and often made this known, publicly declaring how odd each other's habits were), but the significance of this suddenly shared aspect set it apart from those other things that they would never understand.

The mask, in Hoshido's culture, was used by trained ninja, usually hiding the lower half of their faces rather than circling the eyes. They were serious, worn in matters of secrecy and stealth, spying, assassinations, and the like.

In Nohr, masks were worn during times of leisure, at parties, perhaps even on trips out to town: a fad recently developed. Some eccentrics had taken to wearing them all the time, even alone in their own homes. One wondered if they went so far as to sleep with those very same masks on, not even bothering to replace them with a sleeping mask.

All of this was, of course, mostly among the nobility and other wealthy citizens; the peasantry had no time for it.

The Nohrians put their fashion on display at masquerades, events that only the elitest of the elite were invited to, fraught with talk of politics and scandals and such that the higher nobility alone were privy to.

That Kaze had infiltrated one and not made himself seem out of place was quite the feat in itself. Many of Nohr's upper class would envy his position; ironically, he didn't even want to be here.

For the time being, Nohr was wary to extend invitations to Hoshido's royals, at the very least, not its king, but they would accept diplomats and others from the royal court. Kaze qualified as one of those "others".

Glancing about, at the men in their prim suits with puffed sleeves and the women in their wide, decorative dresses, he became grateful for his garments in Hoshidan style but with added Nohrian flair. Everything else seemed so... constricting.

He kept to himself, hiding behind the clinking of glasses and silverware against plates, the shrill chittering of the nobles' voices blending in with the background noise. It covered him up, a hood added to his mask, so hardly anyone noticed the Hoshidan ninja creeping around completely out of his element, trussed up in unfamiliar clothing that made him into more of a model than person. Comfortable though they were, they gave him the feeling of a glorified object, an accent to the ballroom, the main hall, wherever he was, rather than a guest. His own fault, no doubt, due to his quietness.

The women, though, as always, found him without any trouble. Nothing deterred them, even if he stuttered out a nervous response or gave an obvious rebuttal. They clearly found it endearing, much to his annoyance.

_Gods, let me leave. Or at least be alone._

He excused himself, citing some irreverent reasoning he hoped they would accept. In his attempt to escape, he backed up into someone behind him, paying full attention to his front.

"Oh, pardon me— M–Milord!" he started, upon realizing this someone was King Xander.

Kaze straightened his posture, bowing his head. "Your Highness, I am so— I apologize profusely for running into you."

"Kaze." Xander placed one finger under Kaze's chin and a thumb on it and lifted his head. "We've met before. And I told you then that you don't have to be so formal. Nothing has changed since then."

"Much has changed," Kaze said, nimbly stepping back and freeing himself from Xander's gentle hold. "You're a king now. Even if we're familiar with each other, you're deserving of respect—."

"I understand your reasoning," Xander said. "But please, speak to me with familiarity, the way my family does."

The prince — no, king, now — had put aside ceremonial armour in favour of something a little lighter but no less stunning: gold filigree outlined much the entirety of his clothes, most obvious on his dress coat. Arabesques adorned the sleeves, pockets, and the area around the buttons, but upon reaching the collar became delicate laurels. Lions pranced on the back edge of his coat, which circled around him as a whirlpool whenever he walked. His silken white dress shirt and cravat distinguished themselves from all the black and gold with their bright cleanliness. Black pants and boots shined to perfection finished everything off. He looked every bit the part of a king, though he still wore his usual black circlet around his head. In comparison, Kaze must have seemed quite dull.

Nevertheless, he relaxed his tense posture and sighed.

"It has been a while since I've last seen you, Xander," he said. "I forget that in private you're more lax with titles and formalities. It was just a habit, the way I spoke to you before. I'd adjusted myself to Hoshidan court life."

"Hm." A small smile crossed Xander's face. "So I imagine, since you're here. You were sent by King Ryoma?"

"Indeed I was. Why I was chosen is beyond me. This is... not the sort of thing I'm used to." Kaze threw a wary glance back in the direction he'd come from and, finding the women had separated but remained milling about in that spot, decided to keep his stay here.

"Hoshido doesn't hold events such as these?" Xander asked.

"At times. But I tend to avoid them."

"Are you not enjoying yourself here, then?"

Thrown off by the note of genuine concern in Xander's voice, Kaze struggled for an answer.

"I'm... not, particularly." he forced himself to admit.

"But it's no fault of yours," he added. "I'm simply not accustomed to the atmosphere."

Xander eyed the band adjusting their instruments near the ballroom dance-floor.

"Perhaps we can do something to change that." he said.

Kaze's heart came to a full stop when Xander offered him his hand. And then came the question...

"Would you like to dance?"

"I... with you?" Kaze said without a thought. "I mean— of course, I'd be honoured!"

He chose his next words carefully, speaking slow, one word after the other. "I wonder about what your court would think of the king dancing with a plain Hoshidan ninja. I'm not particularly important in Hoshido's court, either."

Considering what he said, and then deciding he hadn't explained himself properly, he continued, "Should you not be concerned with finding a queen? Or a prince-consort, I suppose."

That last bit may have sounded almost too hopeful.

"And why should I be concerned with those things?" Xander asked him.

Oh, he was toying with Kaze now. He found that funny, did he? How unbecoming of a king.

Kaze's eyebrow twitched, and he crossed his arms over his chest.

"I may not attend these events, Xander, but I am not ignorant as to what happens at them," he said. "In Hoshido, eligible nobles come from all over hoping to catch King Ryoma's eye. In Nohr it cannot be so different."

"What's made you so cross with me all of a sudden?"

"You think me foolish. I won't have it."

"Ah." Xander nodded. "You think I'm teasing you."

Close enough.

"What if I were to tell you," Xander began. "That someone already has my interest and so I'm no longer paying much mind to those others vying for my attention."

Kaze cocked his head to the side. He couldn't mean...

Yet Xander extended his hand again. "May I have this dance, Kaze?"

A frown. "You're mocking me."

"I'm not. Dance with me."

Reluctantly, Kaze stretched out his hand to meet Xander's, and their fingers interlocked. With this, Xander pulled Kaze toward him, a small but insistent encouragement, and Kaze allowed himself to be led down to the ballroom floor below.

A fine pearlescent white staircase brought them to the soft yellow marbled dance-floor where they took their place among the other couples, earning no shortage of stares. Kaze kept his head held high, avoiding eye contact with both them and Xander until the music started.

Nohrians danced in shapes. The lines were not so easily defined, as they gave the illusion of the dance having no order when it did. They would all begin in a loose circle, then as they spread out it would become a square, then finally a triangle, of which the best dancers would be pushed to the forefront.

Kaze had studied these things on the chance (off-chance, he thought then) he might need them, maybe even on the distant dream that he might, _might_ , find some handsome man to dance with.

Obviously, he never expected that man to be Xander. Whom he would have to rely on for the steps to this dance, he realized. He knew them only in a vague sense.

He got as far as placing his hands in the correct positions (start standing side by side, then move to face your partner, but don't break your hold on their hand, then place your free hand around their waist) before he was relying on Xander to lead him.

"You know this dance well," Xander noted. "Have you practiced?"

"Not outside of reading about it." Kaze answered, and said nothing more.

Among the other pairs around them were Xander's two retainers, Laslow and Peri, twirling merrily about together, Peri emitting constant giggles. The pairs of retainers belonging to the other three royal children had also made dance partners of each other, with varying amounts of success.

On the balcony off to the right, overlooking the main floor, stood Xander's siblings, observing the festivities. Elise stood on her toes, peering over the railing at her older brother. She watched the dancers with a keen interest, and eventually tugged on her brother Leo's arm, pointing toward the floor. He frowned, shook his head, and she pouted in response, any words inaudible. Camilla acted as a mediator, saying something to the two of them, and Leo seemed to relent. Elise smiled, grabbed his hand, and dragged him along behind her to the ballroom floor. She was beaming as she took her place near Kaze and Xander and began to dance with Leo.

Xander matched her smile, eliciting a cheerful laugh from her. Camilla remained on the balcony, 'til she eventually disappeared for a time and later reappeared on the ballroom floor with a lovely young woman on her arm.

"I have a question, if I may, Xander." Kaze said, still monitoring his movements to avoid missteps while he talked.

"Go on."

"How did you recognize me with the mask on?"

Xander chuckled. "You're used to those masks the Hoshidans wear; these aren't meant to conceal our identity. Everyone here can recognize each other."

"It's meant to be fashionable, then. I see." (He didn't.)

The melody of the song must have indicated, or it was simply part of the dance, a change in position, as the dancers spun 'round with their partners to face in the opposite direction. Kaze, unaware, was nearly lifted off his feet, maintaining his balance barely with the toe of one shoe on the ground.

"Besides that," Xander continued. "I remembered your eyes."

"Oh?"

"It's, ah..." Xander's cheeks flushed. "Difficult to explain. You always have a certain look in your eyes... it's a sort of confidence, even in an unfamiliar situation. It's fascinated me since our first meeting."

Now it was Kaze's turn to laugh. "You must be quite taken with me to remember such a small detail."

As the words left his mouth, it occurred to him what he said, and he bit his lip to stop that sentence that was already gone away from him, and a flash of red stretched from his face to the tips of his ears.

Xander did not answer him with words but with movement, Kaze responding in turn. They danced with more gusto, the music picking up tempo, the dancers changing to their triangle shape, clearing the way for Kaze and Xander at the front point. The others watched, but to the two of them, they were as much alone as if the ballroom had been empty.

They parted from each other's hold, connected still by their hands clasped together between them. Understanding each other's intentions with a smile, a certain glint in the eye, they planned every step. Xander led Kaze in a delicate spin, and when Kaze returned to his arms, back against his chest, he tilted his head up to see Xander's eyes for just one moment, and they exchanged their loving glances before anyone could notice they'd paused to do so (and before either could fully register what he was doing).

They danced all around the floor in a swirl of green and white, black and gold, to the edge of the steps leading down from the balcony, and there they stopped with the music. Kaze, on a whim, leaned forward and dipped Xander down toward the floor (he felt Xander's leg hook around his thigh). Their noses nearly touched. The elation on Xander's face was such that Kaze had never seen before.

Ignoring the claps and cheering from those around them, Kaze said, "May I, Milord?"

He received a teasing response, but with the sort of sly, flirtatious grin that he couldn't be angry at. "I thought I told you to call me Xander. And yes, you may."

Maintaining a firm hold on his partner, Kaze leaned down and kissed Xander's lips.

**Author's Note:**

> This is a highly experimental piece since I'm new to the series and I'm still working out how to write these characters. However, I was very happy with how this piece turned out and decided to post it. I hope you enjoyed it!


End file.
